Wednesday, 17 June 2015

A harmless snake inspires food safety thought:

Food Safety inspectors
and auditors are expected to check the up-keep of the exterior surroundings when
they visit a food establishment. To the general public, the sighting of a
harmless snake in a bush patch near the entry to a remote (cottage country) restaurant
may be part of the attraction or distraction but, according to what you hear
one of the owners or workers say in this video, slithering snakes are
apparently not good restaurant entryway decorations. To the inspector or
auditor, the snake sighting, among other things, confirms why the immediate
surroundings of food establishments need to be kept free of bushes. Harmless
snakes may be cute but snakes are not the only things that may find harbourage
in nearby bushes. Some other bush-loving and food-loving pests are of justifiable
concern to food establishment owners, customers, food safety inspectors and
auditors. The sighting at this restaurant certainly raises at least one
question: Can and do all restaurants enjoy the same level and frequency of
regulatory or health department inspections even when they are as remotely
located as this restaurant? The location of the restaurant has been deliberately
left undisclosed.

In your operation or opinion, which of these ranks the highest as an area needing help from an external party?

As a consumer or user of food, pharmaceuticals, medical devices or cosmetics, how would you rank safety, availability and price in order of importance from left (most important) to right (least important)?